After 51 days - by Ruken (Turkey)

      I know this is a weird number, '51 days' but this is the truth, it is almost 2 months already! I feel like I get used to my life in Ourense. The days are passing so fast out of our control! 
     Since we last met in this blog dear readers, I was a little bit busy with adapting in and with my excitement to the new places..After the training week it was a little bit taken aback but now I had more things in my pockets, more people that I knew more places that I would like to go, better knowledge about the life in the city and better friends!..

  
2 weeks ago we went to Santiago De Compostela to visit our volunteer friends there and we were like 9-10 people in total and it was very nice to be with this people in this lovely city. I really liked Santiago with its younger population and there is always motions with the camiño, tourists and different cultures, different songs are being singed and played in every corner! It is an intersection point of the traditional culture and modern and this contrast increases the value of the city. For  me it was very important to find 'a contemporary art museum / Centro Galego de Arte Contemporánea - CGAC a building by famous Portuguese architect Álvaro Siza and I have been feeling a little bit hunger to the arts..After this weekend we had our Italian guests in Orense and they loved termas and the nature in here!

And then we had Youth Exchange in Sustinea collaborating with one organisation from Italy and one from Portugal, this 8 days workshop consist 30 people and we get to communicate with young people from different backgrounds and I believe this was a very ecological and efficient week for them. In this week I get to have my personal workshop as a coordinator with natural materials and clay art and it was very nice for me to see how people liked it and were good at doing it. As a hobby I would like to investigate eco - sustainable arts from sustainable, natural and recycle materials and I like using clay to make earth jewellery and it made me feel good sharing my art with other people and improve it with them..With this youth exchange and 'exchangers' I get to see the amazing natural wonder Cañon de Sil, we were at Balcones de Madrid with an incredible view, natural paths with vineries and the oldest castaña tree..
 
On the other hand, the things in Sustinea was a bit busy too, I am still amazed how fast we designed the allotment and our plants in the allotment garden is growing very fast! It is really a nice feeling to see the growing of the plants you planted!




 


And the last days I was in Vigo to visit the city and my friends, Vigo with its transportation wasn't very nice to me because everything is far from each other and spreaded but the time I spent there was very nice in the playa -I get to swim in the ocean in April! And the fiesta of Bouzas - I was very lucky to encounter with a local fiesta honestly because I had to see and taste local products, all of them seem very good!
  

Last thing before I finish my words, the things that I find funny or different in my Ourense journey: 

*very little dressed dogs (eveybody has at least 2 little dogs??)
*the not working lockeries in bathrooms
*lots of huge TVs in the cafes (they are everywhere)
*pharmacies which looks like futuristic night clubs ??

*bonito cañon de Sil 


-Ruken